Description
San Francisco general manager Farhan Zaidi was hired in November 2018. Zaidi, who previously served as an assistant general manager for the Los Angeles Dodgers under current Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, was tasked with revitalizing San Francisco.
The Giants spent a lot of money in the 2010s and won three World Series titles. But the Giants were in crisis, with an aging roster and a string of big-money free agent signings that failed to pan out. The team didn't have a lot of young talent, and the team's payroll didn't have a lot of flexibility due to some bad contracts. Zaidi seemed like the right man to untangle this complex thread.
Basically, I had the know-how to develop small market teams. He also had a lot of experience managing a team's payroll. After Zaidi took over, the team put the big free agent signings behind them and focused on building the farm system and solidifying the core, but he was also nervous. The team was basically underperforming. The team has only won one district title since Zaidi took over, and most of the seasons have been sub-5% winning seasons. For a team like San Francisco, a string of sub-5% seasons was enough to stir the pot.
But the Giants rehired Zaidi anyway. They fired manager Gabe Kepler, but gave Zaidi a contract extension. However, there are some locals who believe that Zaidi's firing had more to do with stabilizing the organization than having 100% confidence in his abilities. It is risky to fire both the head coach and the general manager at the same time, so it was a move to maintain stability by aligning Zaidi's contract with that of new head coach Bob Melvin.
For the first time since his arrival, Zaidi had the full support of the club. He had a lot of money to spend, but he also had some good young players coming out of the 토토사이트 farm system. San Francisco decided it was time to make a run for it and added a number of players in free agency. Jorge Soler, Matt Chapman, and Blake Snell were the next to wear the Giants' colors. This year, the Giants were determined to make the postseason.
But San Francisco finished the first half with a 47-50 (.485) record. That's good for fourth place in the district, behind the Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona, and San Diego. In terms of standings, the Giants are no better off than last year. They're also eighth in the National League wild card race. It's not a huge gap, but it's still disappointing. Zaidi's signings have all fallen short of expectations. Chapman and Soler have been underwhelming, while Snell hasn't been able to finish the first half of the season due to various injuries. Lee Jung-hoo is out for the season with a shoulder injury.
USA Today columnist and major league baseball source Bob Nightingale, quoting officials from other clubs, wrote on Friday that “rival executives believe Zaidi is among the managers who must make the postseason to keep their jobs.” The Nightingale singled out Zaidi, Toronto general manager Ross Atkins, and San Diego president of baseball operations A.J. Preller as managers whose jobs are at risk if they don't make the postseason. They all have one thing in common: they've spent a lot of money recently, but their performance this year hasn't been up to par.
Of course, that's what rival team executives think, which may not be what the San Francisco brass thinks. Basically, San Francisco ownership has faith in Zaidi. His re-signing after last season is proof of that. They've also been relatively faithful in following his instructions to overhaul the roster. But the problem is that the Giants have had a losing season or worse in seven of the last eight seasons, and Zaidi is not immune to this problem. For Lee, it would be nice to have a manager who paid big bucks for him. If the new coach doesn't recognize Lee's skills, it's not a good thing. It will be interesting to see if the relationship between Lee and Zaidi can continue.